Improved railway-car coupling



G. H ARRIS. Car Coupling.

No. 89,145. .Y Patented April 20, 1869.

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Mase-W GEORGE HARRIS, OF IPSWICH, MASSACHUSETTS.

l Lette/rs Patent No. 819,145, dated pr'il 20, 1869.

IMPRO'VED RAILWAY-CAR COUPLING.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all persons to whom these presents may come:`

Beit known that I, GEORGE HARRIS., of Ipswich, in the county of Essex, and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Railway-CarriageCouplings; and do hereby declare the same to be fully described in the following speciiication, and represented in the accompanying drawings, of whieh- Figure 1 is a top view,

Figure 2, a side elevation, and Y Figure 3, a'longitudinal section of a railway-carriage draw-bar, as provided with my improvement.

Figure 4 is a side view, and

Figure 5, a rear-end view of the' bler, to be hereinafter explained.

In such drawings- A denotes the draw-bar, having within it a chamber or space, B, provided with a daring mouth, C. The said chamber or space is open at top.

Within the chamber B is a gravitating catch-pawl or tumbler, D, which turns freely on a pin, a, going through it and the draw-har, suoli tumbler being formed as represented, and especially with two-ears-or projections, b 0,-extended from it in manner as shown in figs. 3 and 4.

Near the rear part of the tumbler or gravitating eatch-pawl is an eye or perforated projection, d, whose purpose is to enable a tripping line to be fastened to the tumbler.

A connection bar, E, is used to eiect the'coupling of two ears, having draw-bars provided with the gravitating tumblers, as described.

This connection bar is furnished with two projections or shoulders, h h, and two tapering or pointed ends, k

gravitating tumk, formed and arranged in manner as represented in the drawings. Y

Extending down through the draw bar and its mouth is a pin-passage, c, its purpose being to enable the draw-bar, provided with the tumbler, to be connected by a pin and link with a common draw-bar, unprovided with a tumbler.

As it will sometimes happen that to a car having its draw-bars supplied with tnmblers, it may. be desirable to couple a car, whose draw-bars may not be so furnished, but have the common open link and pin-connection, the addition of the pin-passage e to the draw-bar and tumbler is productive of advantage.

When the connection bar E, while projecting from a draw-bal' of one carriage, which may be in movement toward another for the purpose of being coupled toit may enter the draw-bar destined for its reception, the catch-pawl or tumbler of the latter draw-bar will hang vertically on its pin.

lhe connection bar, continuing to advance, will turn the tumbler up into an inclined position, until the catch shoulder of the bar may pass beyond the tumbler.

As soon as this may take place, the tumbler will drop down upon that part of the upper surface of the bar which is between its two shoulders, and thus lock or latch the bar in connection with the draw-bar.

On elevating the tumbler out of engagement with the connection bar, so a's to cause the tumbler to assume the position indicated bythe dotted lines in iig. 3, its projection, b, .will rest against the frontend of the top opening f of the chamber of the draw-bar, and with such will serve to support the said tumbler in its upturned position.'

Now, when the tumbler is so elevated, the other ear or projection, c, will -be brought into such a position as to be struck by the rear shoulder of the connection bar, while such bar may be in the act of being drawn ont of the draw-bar.

The consequence will be that on drawing the conncction bar out of the draw-bar, the former, by its action against the ear or projection c, will overset the tumbler or cause it to fall down into a vertical position,l and thus set it for the coupling of another drawbar.

From the above -it will be seen that to effect the uncoupling of two ears, it will not be necessary for an attendant to hold up the tumbler while the connection bar may be in the act of being drawn out of the draw-bar, as all 11e will have to do is simply to pull up the tumbler into the position indicated by the dottedlines, and there leave it.

Vhen, afterward, the front car may be drawn away from the carin rear of it, the connection bar, in passing out of the draw-bar, will overset the tumbler, or cause itv to fall into the position'for the coupling of another draw-bar.

Thus, at any time, prior to the drawing of one car away from another, an attendant may throw up the tumbler of the rearmost car, and by so doing the ears will be disengaged, ready for the drawing of one away from the other, whenever it may be desirable to eiiect such, the tumbler being overthrown by the connection bar during its extraction from the draw-bar.

I make no claim to the employment of a gravitating v tumbleror pawl in adraw-bar to operate with a link or connection bar, as this is an old device.

Nor do I claim a draw-bar provided with a pin-passage, but being wit-hout a tumbler, as described.

The arrangement andcombination of the trippingear or projection, c, with the tumbler applied to Vthe draw-bar, in manner and so as to operate substantial] as specified.

Also, the combination and .arrangement of the stop 'or projection b with the tripping-ear or projection c,

and with the tumbler applied to the draw-bar, in manner and so as to operate substantially as explained.

Also, the combination and arrangement of the pinpassage e with the draw-bar and the tumbler', the whole being substantially as set forth.

Witnesses: GEORGE HARRIS.

It. H. EDDY, F. P. HALE, Jr. 

